The Oxnard City Council appointed a former chief finance officer to a temporary position on Tuesday but not without hashing out some unresolved issues.

Mayor Tim Flynn summed it up this way: “Obviously, there’s some wounds here that haven’t healed.”

On a 3-2 vote, the council hired David Millican to lead an overworked and understaffed finance department until a new CFO is hired. Councilmen Bryan MacDonald and Bert Perello expressed their respect for Millican but dissented.

Millican came to the city as a financial consultant through Management Partners Inc. when Greg Nyhoff was Oxnard city manager. Through the years, Millican worked on the city’s finances and served a brief stint as the CFO until a leg injury from an accident ended it.

In a lengthy explanation of why he didn’t support the appointment, Perello hearkened to Nyhoff’s tenure, which was often marked by soured relations with labor unions.

Perello said Nyhoff and Management Partners had presented a “doomsday situation” when describing the city’s fiscal challenges.

“Then it turned out later we had more money than believed to be. ... There’s been a lot of bad taste from a lot of employees,” Perello said. “We’re supposed to be getting better and this, I don’t think, will make it better.”

Nyhoff had asked employees to make $4 million in concessions as a way to close a budget gap. The proposal, on top of public safety cuts, led to protracted contract negotiations and worsened relations. Unions also pointed their attacks on Flynn, a fervent supporter of Nyhoff. Ultimately, the employee concessions were not made.

MacDonald, known for being brief, didn’t elaborate on his reasons for denying Millican. Addressing Millican, MacDonald said: “I respect you as an incredibly intelligent person, but I’m not convinced this is the best way to go. Unfortunately, I’m not going to be able to support this. I hold you to the highest regard, but I believe there are other options we can explore.”

The issue, Flynn said Tuesday, wasn’t whether Nyhoff, Millican or Management Partners had inaccurate numbers. The problem is that the city had been operating for decades under financial mismanagement.

Flynn said Millican came in when Nyhoff, relatively new, still had not grasped the extent of the city’s financial woes.

Nyhoff “had to make decisions that cost him politically, unlike anybody I’ve ever seen pay a price for,” Flynn said. “Those budget decisions we made were highly political decisions, and I believe (Nyhoff) suffered the consequences. He took a bullet. Now, did he make mistakes? Did Mr. Millican make mistakes? Yes, absolutely.”

But Millican can now offer the steady hand that the city needs, Flynn said.

“In fact, this man has more experience than all the finance people in this room combined,” Flynn said. “I’m sorry, Mr. Millican, this world is not devoid of political decisions. I’m not accusing my colleagues of anything. I’m just saying that this reminds me very much of the Nyhoff era.”

Councilwoman Carmen Ramirez said it’s difficult for public agencies to find the right person with the financial expertise to do the job.

“I believe our City Council faces a situation where we don’t have anyone who can step up or (they) don’t want to step up to do the job,” she said.